


A Quartzy Competition.

by Chromite



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Competition, Cooking, Eating, Gem and human interactions, Little Homeworld, Post-Episode s05e29-32 Change Your Mind, Set before the Movie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-04
Updated: 2019-09-04
Packaged: 2020-10-10 02:35:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20520539
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chromite/pseuds/Chromite
Summary: Three healed Quartz gems in Little Homeworld decide to have a friendly food competition.





	A Quartzy Competition.

>In Little Homeworld, gems were learning to live in peace and harmony with their human neighbors down in Beach City. The gems would take frequent trips into the human settlement, eager to learn as much as they could about Earth culture.   
>Three such gems had just finished an outing of their own into town. The first one was an Ocean Jasper. She was a light blue color, with bright pink spots and stripes dotted across her form. Two small blue horns poked out of her head from underneath her white hair and flowed down her back to her bottom, wild and messy. Her body was clad in a darker blue shirt and pants, the feet at the end of the pants fading into an icy blue. Her shirt and pants were separated to allow the round blue gem with pink spots at her naval to shine brightly in the sunlight.   
>The second one was a Zebra Jasper. Most of her skin was a pale white, with stripes of ashy grey upon her form, particularly dense on her left arm, completely grey from her hand down to her elbow, then breaking into the stripped pattern. A single horn sat on the middle of her forehead, sticking out of her light blue hair that ran down her back. Her torso was covered in a black vest, her feet clad in thick black boots, and her pants a light grey color. Her gemstone was located in the middle of her chest, shaped like a small diamond, but rounded and smooth to the touch.   
>The third one was a Biggs Jasper. Her skin was a mix of light brown and dirt brown, patterned in wavy lines running horizontal across her form. Her build was broader than the other two, her shoulders a little wider, her muscles a little thicker. Three horns poked out of her wild white hair. Her outfit was simpler, a pair of overall shorts and a pair of boots, both the same dark brown color, darker than her stripes. Her gem also rested on her chest, between the two overall stripes, hexagonal shaped and light brown with darker rings within.   
>The three Quartzes were fast friends, constantly looking for new things to try and experience together, turning things into a competition more often than not. It was this competitive spirit that led them to their latest competition, a mere three months after being healed of corruption.  
>"Hey, we've consumed a lot of Earth's food dishes now, right?" Ocean spoke in a quieter tone, matching the calm nature of the sea when the tides weren't heavy.   
>"We sure have! Humans really know how to create delicious things!" Zebra spoke out in earnest, thinking of all the dishes she had sampled and enjoyed, licking her lips at the memory.   
>"Some of their food is strange, but creative. There's a lot of possibilities for new creations." Biggs spoke out in a strong but caring tone. "Why do you ask Ocean?"  
>"I was thinking, we should try to cook our own meals, right?! We could turn it into a competition and see who makes the best Earth style dish!" Ocean's voice grew louder as her excitement at her idea spilled out.   
>Zebra stroked her face with her left hand for a moment in contemplation. "Interesting idea. We are always looking to learn new things, it might be good to start learning how to make these dishes ourselves."  
>Biggs nodded in agreement. "It's a brilliant idea to try. Worst case, we learn what not to do. I'm willing to give it a shot! What do you say Zebra?"  
>Zebra nodded her head in agreement. "I'm in too. We should set up some guidelines for this."  
>Ocean spoke up. "Well, since none of us have cooked before, we should buy stuff from the store to help us. I hear humans make mixes and kits to help themselves create dishes. We can use those as guidelines and add our own touches to them."  
>Zebra and Biggs nodded in agreement with this plan. Biggs spoke up. "Okay, we'll go to the store and pick up supplies, then go back to our own homes. We'll meet up in Beach City, near the restraunts. That should give each of us enough time to prepare our dishes."  
>Zebra threw an extra bit in. "The winner is decided by whoever brings the dish enjoyed the most by one of the store runners. That'll keep it fair and unbiased."  
>With the rules in place, the three went to the store to pick up their supplies, then separated to go to their own homes, each one hiding her ingredients from the others to avoid giving away her plans.   
>In Ocean's home, she worked tirelessly away at a pasta dish, something simple, yet hopefully fancy enough to impress her friends and humans. She put the noodles into the water to boil, diced up the onions, bell peppers, and mushrooms she had bought, and fried pre-ground venison in a jarred pasta sauce, adding a few dashes of her favorite seasonings. The aroma of the meat cooking and the smell of the freshly cut peppers and onions was making her mouth water.   
>The water for the noodles started to boil over after thirty minutes. Ocean turned off the stove eye with a smile, setting the pot aside to allow it to cool while she threw her freshly cut vegetables into the cooling water. When the meat looked cooked through enough to her, she tipped the frypan up over the large pot of water, noodles, and vegetables, and poured it all in, stirring it with a large spoon and giggling in glee.   
>Ocean stared at her finished product with love. The water had taken on a red tint, bits of meat and vegetables were tangled within the pasta, floating at different depths in the pot. "This is going to be the best tasting dish, I'm sure of it!"  
>In Zebra's home, she had selected a boxed chocolate cake mix, one that called for simple ingredients to be added to it. She took care to measure out the butter, the water, and the eggs exactly as instructed. She mixed the batter to the perfect consistency. She preheated the over to the right temperature. She poured the mixture into a small cake pan.  
>She hummed a happy tune as she cut up fresh banana slices to go into the chocolate cake, small blueberries already resting within the mix. The slices fell one at a time, Zebra herself eating the end pieces to keep the size of the slices equal. She mixed the slices and berries into the mix with glee, certain her fruit and chocolate cake would win the contest as she popped it into the oven. The sweet aroma that drifted from her oven made her sure she would win the competition.  
>In Bigg's house, she laid out a store bought pizza crust and spread two different sauces upon the bread, swirling Alfredo and marinara together into a pale pink blend, the oven in her home already preheating as she worked.   
>Biggs hummed to herself as she sprinkled mozzarella cheese upon the sauce, covering the pink with a thin layer of white. Next, she started to add the toppings she had selected, laying the pepperoni slices out at an even spacing, shredding some uncooked bacon strips and scattering the bits across the top, draining the juice from the olive slices before she placed each one gently upon her creation. She topped the whole thing off with jalapeno peppers, something humans had told her would be spicy. She wasn't sure what that meant, but she was excited to try it out for herself!  
>Biggs topped her pizza with a thin layer of Parmesan cheese before popping it into the oven. She smiled as she smelled the aroma of the pizza cooking, certain she would have the best dish.   
>The time passed, the three friends met upon the boardwalk, in front of the local sea food place, the Crab Shack. Biggs came to the meeting place with a thin box in her hands and a worried look on her face. Ocean came along carrying a large metal pot and smiling confidently. Zebra came carrying a larger box, skipping as she made her way to her friends.   
>"Hey you two, how'd it go? Did you guys make something you're happy with? I know I did!" Zebra declared confidently.  
>Ocean spoke up in a softer tone. "I think mine came out pretty well! I just hope the human here agrees with me!"  
>Biggs shuffled her feet nervously. "I....I think I messed up a little. I think mine cooked too long. it looks discolored to me."   
>With that, the human restaurant owner came out. He was an older gentleman, his hair thin and grey, his skin pale, his body hunched over a little as he walked, "So yer all the gems that want a food judge? Ya came to the right guy. Present your dishes and I'll taste them."  
>"I'll go first!" Ocean smiled widely as she sat her pot on the table, pulling a bowl and spoon from her gem as she poured some of the saucy water into the bowl, then scooped some noodles, meat, and vegetables in behind it. She placed a form and spoon in the bowl and slid it over to the old man. "I hope you enjoy it."  
>The man took a few bites of the noodles and ingredients while sipping at the broth. "Not bad, but next time, drain the noodles before adding the rest to it. Your sauce flavors deluded out in the water too much."  
>Ocean nodded as she removed her pot and stepped aside. "I'll go next! Sorry, it's a little messy, but I hope it tastes good!" Zebra spoke up as she sat the large box down on the table and opened it up. Inside was a lopsided cake, tilted against the sides of the box and mushed a little. Zebra's cheeks flushed grey as she cut off a small portion and placed it on a plate in front of the man, a nervous smile on her face.  
>The man used his fork to place bites of the cake in his mouth, savoring the flavor of blueberry, banana, and chocolate. "It's strong and your craftsmanship need work, but the flavors are well blended despite their strength. You did a decent job."   
>Zebra nodded her head and slid the box away from the man quietly. That left only Biggs left to present her dish.  
>Biggs stuttered out as she placed the thin box in front of the man and opened it. The crust and cheese had burnt spots on them, marred with black and grey upon the otherwise brown crust and white cheese. The man gently pulled a piece away and gave it a chew. "Your blend of sauce here is nice, the toppings mingle perfectly with each other, and the spice of peppers is a nice touch. It's a shame the burnt portions mar the experience, you have a lovely pizza here otherwise."  
>Biggs nodded her head and slid her pizza away. The man cleared his throat and spoke out. "You all did a good job for a first attempt cooking, and you all have areas to improve on. For today, the lady with the cake is the best, her flavors were the most consistent and her mistakes the easiest to compensate for while eating." The man cracked a smile. "I look forward to seeing what you three can do in the future, keep up the good work."  
>"Congrats Zebra, nice work!" Ocean spoke with excitement. "We should keep working at this, cooking was fun!"  
>"Nice job Zebra, guess you win this time. I won't lose next time!" Biggs spoke with determination in her voice.   
>"Thanks guys. The old man was right, we should keep cooking and improve our skills. Maybe we can work together in the future?"  
>"Absolutely, I'd love to!" Ocean spoke out in glee. "Sure, we can help each other out soon." Biggs added on at the end.   
>With their competition over, the three sat down to enjoy the dishes they had made, each taking parts of the other's dishes. While they realized they weren't as good as humans at cooking, they still enjoyed their shared meal and looked forward to cooking again.


End file.
